Ex-Ohio State pledge claims Urban Meyer forgot his name

COCOA, Fla. — Bruce Judson has cited his lack of communication with Ohio State coach Urban Meyer as the reason for his de-commitment from the Buckeyes back in October.

Bruce Judson, an athlete from Cocoa, Fla.

But during an interview with SEC Country, Judson revealed the specific incident involving Meyer that led to his decision. The four-star athlete visited Ohio State in July for its Friday Night Lights recruiting showcase.

At the time, Judson had been committed to OSU for seven months. However, he said his relationship with Meyer had deteriorated since that pledge.

“Coach Meyer contacted me enough to get my commitment,” Judson said. “Then once he got me, he told me make sure I keep calling him. But after a couple months, he just stopped talking to me.

“The rest of the staff stayed in touch, but I didn’t get any love from Coach Meyer. If I’m committed there, you should treat me how you treat the recruits that you still want.”

That was highlighted for Judson on his next and last trip to Ohio State. While walking with four-star safety Richard LeCounte III, now a Georgia commit, Judson explains how Meyer approached both recruits and initially didn’t know who Judson was:

“Long story short, I was walking in the hallway about to go to the indoor field and work out. He was like, ‘Hey.’ I looked around. ‘Come here.’ He was like, ‘How you doing, you like your visit?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ Then he’s like, ‘What up Richard LeCounte? Are you showing this guy (Judson) around?’ I was like, ‘Coach, I’m showing him around.’ He asked me, ‘Who are you?’ I told him Bruce. He said, ‘Oh, Bruce Judson from Florida. The speedy guy.’ I was like, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘I’m glad that you’re on board and glad you got up here.’ After that, I knew I was de-committing.”

LeCounte corroborated Judson’s story to SEC Country, though he thought it might have been a joke and Meyer purposefully didn’t recognize Judson because he had on a dark blue shirt (Michigan colors). But Judson claims this was no laughing matter, and it’s hard for anyone to miss his trademark mustache.

“We had met face-to-face before at a satellite camp,” Judson said, “so he should have known who I was, especially with me being a commit.”